The cost of delivery is the most off putting issue when online customers consider buying items from abroad, according to research by a London university funded by eBay Enterprise.

Imperial College London surveyed 227 online shoppers from the UK, western and southern Europe in July this year for a report called Buying Across Borders. They found that the five biggest issues that put off online shoppers were:

1. High delivery cost (80%)

2. Unavailability of preferred payment method (74%)

3. Poor product information, including images, text and video (68%)

4. Long delivery time (64%)

5. Price difference due to exchange rate (57%)

Retailers that provide a range of delivery options and payment methods, with detailed product information should be able to tackle these issues. Providing premium services for those willing to pay should therefore enable a company to get around the problem posed by selling outside your immediate territory.